Hood latch adjustment

[maxdog]

Hi
I opened my hood at a car show on Sunday and then could not close it . The latch seemed to have "sproinged" closed .
I managed to open the catch somehow , closed the hood and drove home .I popped the hood today , the release cable seemed to be out of adjustment , so I took off the catch to get at the cable retaining bolt ,. Big mistake . I forgot to scribe the location of the catch on the fire wall .
The hood will only latch with the hood proud of the scuttle , I can't adjust the catch so that the hood close properly .
THe catch seems to be a finger amputating device , even after cleaning and flooding with penetrating oil it needs major leverage to move it and snaps open and closed like a mouse trap .
Does any one have a clear close up of the latch mechanism in the open and closed positions ? Any suggestions ? Would a new hood catch be a good idea??
Cheers Maxdog

[DieselSpider]

If you tried to shut the hood with the latch already in the closed and locked down position there is a good chance that you dented the mounting point on the hood or the latch pin mounted to it so that will need to be addressed by pulling out the dent, straightening the pin or adding shims between the hood and the latch pin first. If you damaged the latch mechanism when trying to force the hood down on it when the latching arm was already locked down they you may need to get a new mechanism however if its springing open and closed smartly it does not sound like that would be the case. It works very similarly to every other trunk or hood latch out there with a pivoting hook.

Here is the hood latch in the open position:

https://www.vickauto.com/newstore/index ... ts_id=3557

Here is the trunk latch in the open position which looks almost identical:

https://autoricambi.us/collections/exte ... sm-1975-85

Here is the newer style hood latch which has the additional lift spring and arm however still similar in basic design:

https://autoricambi.us/products/hood-re ... tch-196678

[maxdog]

Thanks for the quick reply and clear pictures .
I have not dented the hood or the hood mounted locking pin - yet ! So I'm reluctant to touch this part of the hood lock .
The catch on the fire wall seems to be the problem . It does not operate smoothly between open and locked . When it jams it needs much force applied in random positions to persuade it to move . When it does move it snaps rapidly from one position to the other
If I have the hood open and the catch in the open position I cannot get the catch to close by pressing down on the catch using a screw driver shaft in to mimic the locking pin on the hood .
Looks as if I neee a new hood lock ??
Maxdog

[kilrwail]

Maybe you need to try a different method of closing the hood. The method I've been using for 41 years is to drop the hood from a height of about 10", ensuring of course that the latch is open to receive it. I can't latch the hood by pressing it down - I have to drop it.

[DieselSpider]

Yes it should snap open and closed as its that snapping action that sets and releases the pawl/hook. If its so messed up that it does not work with a #2 Phillips screwdriver to mimic the pin even after being cleaned and lubricated then you may just need to replace it.

[maxdog]

Hi
I have finally cracked it !! The problem was a sticky emergency release [I never knew I had one!!!]and a badly adjusted main release cable
I stripped every thing down , removed 40 years of crud and found the emergency release which was binding at the fire wall. I also pulled the dog eared release cable out of its sheath , flushed the sheath with WD 40 , fitted a new inner cable from my local bike shop .
it is important to fit the release cable with a little slack, to be sure that the hood mechanism is not kept in tension and can move through its full range .The hood release lever has a wide arc , there is lots of potential movement at this end of the mechanism .
I thank every one for their input , and hope that my experience may be useful.
Maxdog

[kilrwail]

To complete your project, you might want to install an alternate emergency release cable that doesn't bend at 90 degrees through the firewall. If you've ever tried to use the factory release cable you'll understand why. It binds - a lot. You can replace it with a straight piece of cable through the side bulkhead near the brake reservoir, ending with a loop in the fender well. It doesn't have a bend in it and will never bind.